like cooke , spoke french fluent ##ly and with bernard translating was able to persuade the officer in charge that the new arrivals were forte and pr ##ude ##nte seeking supplies and spanish reinforcements for commerce raiding operations . the officer offered supplies but caution ##ed that none of the spanish ships would be in a position to sail until march at the earliest . cooke then joined the party on the deck of fox , claiming to be commodore la ##tour , a french officer who , unknown to the spanish , had been killed in the action of 9 september 1796 off sumatra . the spanish officer was now completely convinced by the ruse , which had been augmented by fake french uniforms . inviting the
like cooke, spoke french fluently and with bernard translating was able to persuade the officer in charge that the new arrivals were forte and prudente seeking supplies and spanish reinforcements for commerce raiding operations. the officer offered supplies but cautioned that none of the spanish ships would be in a position to sail until march at the earliest. cooke then joined the party on the deck of fox, claiming to be commodore latour, a french officer who, unknown to the spanish, had been killed in the action of 9 september 1796 off sumatra. the spanish officer was now completely convinced by the ruse, which had been augmented by fake french uniforms. inviting the